Steve McQueen’s “12 Years a Slave” took the top prize at this year’s Film Independent Spirit Awards, held in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica on the eve of the Oscars. McQueen also won Best Director, while John Ridley won Best Screenplay for his adaptation of Solomon Northup’s book.

In acting categories, Cate Blanchett won Best Female Lead for her performance in Woody Allen’s “Blue Jasmine,” Matthew McConaughey won Best Male Lead for “Dallas Buyers Club,” Lupita Nyong’o won Best Supporting Female for “12 Years a Slave,” and Jared Leto won Best Supporting Male for “Dallas Buyers Club.”

Spirit Awards also went to “Fruitvale Station” for Best First Feature, and “20 Feet From Stardom” for Best Documentary. In all, Fox Searchlight took home five Spirit Awards, while Focus Features won two.